LOGAN -- A scare and then some Friday finally turned in BYU's favor for a 34-31 overtime victory against Utah State.
Junior Cougar kicker Owen Pochman kicked a 33-yard field goal after USU missed a 42-yard field goal in overtime.
"I was mad at myself because I missed the previous kick," said Pochman. "I was excited I could help the team out after letting them down a bit."
Surprising quick strikes gave Utah State, now 1-3, an early 14-0 first quarter lead over BYU, now 3-1, to the delight of the partisan 31,220 crowd, the third-largest in Romney Stadium history. The Cougars dominated the ball possession category with 50:30 compared to USU's 24:30.
"We got off to a shaky start and then we settled down," said BYU Coach LaVell Edwards, a USU alum. "We hurt ourselves by missing a couple of kicks and fumbling. It was no surprise to me that the game was as close as it was -- I figured it would be all along."
The Aggies scored with 12:57 left in the first quarter when quarterback Jeff Crosbie hit Adrion Pierson for a 32-yard touchdown. Four minutes later Crosbie launched an 87-yard bomb to Aaron Jones for another score after BYU freshman Fahu Tahi fumbled on the USU 13.
Tahi was BYU's workhorse all evening, netting 116 yards off 22 carries. The Cougars' four touchdowns all came from the arm of Kevin Feterik, who was 23 of 36 for 289 yards passing and four TDs.
Feterik left the game briefly in the third quarter with a knee strain and was replaced by sophomore Charlie Peterson. Feterik was taken to the lockerroom just after he fumbled at the BYU 13-yard-line, then BYU's defense held USU on a fourth-and-inches run at the four-yard-line. Moments later Feterik was down after an incomplete pass.
Two of the first three Cougar touchdowns were to reserve tight end Doug Jolley, a four-yard second quarter score and a 5-yard toss in the third quarter to give BYU it's first lead of the night.
Jolley's first TD was set up by a 19-yard interception from linebacker Jeff Holtry, who was subbing for Butkus Award candidate Rob Morris.
"I am happy we got the win because in the end that's all that counts," said Holtry. "They got a couple of big plays against us right off the bat."
The first BYU touchdown came with 4:44 left in the first quarter when Feterik beat a blitz with a 26-yard pass to Jonathan Pittman. Pochman tied the game with a 19-yard field goal with 1:26 left in the first half.
With no time on the clock, USU's Brad Bohn connected on a 55-yard field goal to give the Aggies a 20-17 advantage. Bohn also had a 30-yard field goal in the second quarter and a 47-yarder in the fourth quarter. Teammate Demario Brown netted 91 yards on 24 carries.
The Aggies benefited from a fourth-quarter interception in the endzone when BYU had a first-and-15. Pochman missed a 43-yard field goal with 4:25 left in the game, opening the door for the final Aggie drive in regulation which was capped by a 4-yard TD pass from Crosbie to Brown and a two-point conversion from Crosbie to Jones with 21 seconds left.
BYU's final touchdown was a 14-yard pass to tight end Tevita Ofahengaue.
He led the Cougars' nine receivers with five catches for 71 yards. Pittman also had 71 yards off three catches. USU's Jones had 10 catches for 195 yards.
BYU played the game without the services of Morris, freshman running back Luke Staley, and tight end Carlos Nuño, all of whom were out with injuries.
The game was the third overtime in Cougar history. Previously BYU had won in overtime at Southern Methodist University in 1997 and in 1996 at the Western Athletic Conference Championship in Las Vegas when Pochman's brother, Ethan, booted a 32-yard field goal against Wyoming.
Date: Oct 01, 1999
Site: Logan, Utah
Stadium: Romney Stadium
Attendance: 31,220
Score by Quarters 1 2 3 4 OT Score
----------------- -- -- -- -- -- -----
Brigham Young....... 7 10 7 7 3 - 34
Utah State.......... 14 6 0 11 0 - 31
Scoring Summary
1st 12:57 USU - Adrion Pierson 32 yd pass from Jeff Crosbie (Brad Bohn kick)
08:12 USU - Aaron Jones 87 yd pass from Jeff Crosbie (Brad Bohn kick)
04:55 BYU - PITTMAN, Jonath 26 yd pass from FETERIK, Kevin (POCHMAN, Owen kick)
2nd 11:40 BYU - JOLLEY, Doug 4 yd pass from FETERIK, Kevin (POCHMAN, Owen kick)
09:09 USU - Brad Bohn 30 yd field goal
01:26 BYU - POCHMAN, Owen 19 yd field goal
00:00 USU - Brad Bohn 55 yd field goal
3rd 03:44 BYU - JOLLEY, Doug 5 yd pass from FETERIK, Kevin (POCHMAN, Owen kick)
4th 07:23 BYU - OFAHENGAUE, Tev 14 yd pass from FETERIK, Kevin (POCHMAN, Owen kick)
05:42 USU - Brad Bohn 47 yd field goal
00:21 USU - Demario Brown 4 yd pass from Jeff Crosbie (Aaron Jones pass)
OT 00:00 BYU - POCHMAN, Owen 33 yd field goal
Team Statistics
BYU USU
FIRST DOWNS................... 30 19
Rushing..................... 12 6
Passing..................... 13 9
Penalty..................... 5 4
Rushing Attempts.............. 47 28
Yards Gained Rushing.......... 237 121
Yards Lost Rushing............ 29 13
NET YARDS RUSHING............. 208 108
NET YARDS PASSING............. 289 311
Passes Attempted............ 36 42
Passes Completed............ 23 19
Had Intercepted............. 1 2
TOTAL OFFENSIVE PLAYS......... 83 70
TOTAL NET YARDS............... 497 419
Average Gain Per Play....... 6.0 6.0
Fumbles: Number-Lost.......... 2-2 1-1
Penalties: Number-Yards....... 9-85 11-116
Number of Punts-Yards......... 3-136 4-136
Average Per Punt............ 45.3 34.0
Punt Returns: Number-Yards.... 1-3 3-70
Kickoff Returns: Number-Yards. 6-156 2-115
Interceptions: Number-Yards... 2-37 1-0
Fumble Returns: Number-Yards.. 0-0 0-0
Miscellaneous Yards........... 0 0
Possession Time............... 35:30 24:30
Third-Down Conversions........ 6 of 14 3 of 13
Fourth-Down Conversions....... 0 of 0 1 of 2
Sacks By: Number-Yards........ 1-7 3-19